19 July 2011 early edition/transcript/Part 3
Part 3 JOHN WHITTINGDALE: Jim Sheridan. JIM SHERIDAN: Thank you Chair and again Mr Murdoch senior. Can I ask you - I have a number of short questions for you - why did you enter the back door at Number 10 when you visited the Prime Minister following the last general election? RUPERT MURDOCH: Because I was asked to. SHERIDAN: You were asked to go in the back door of Number 10? RUPERT: Yes. SHERIDAN: Why would that be? RUPERT: To avoid photographers at the front I imagine. I don't know, I was asked - I just did as I was told. SHERIDAN: It's strange that governing heads of state manage to go in the front door... RUPERT: Yes. SHERIDAN: But you have to go in the back door. RUPERT: Yes. That's the choice of the Prime Minister, or their staff or whoever does these things. SHERIDAN: So it was under the Prime Minister's direct instructions that you come in the back door? RUPERT: I was asked would I please come in through the back door. JAMES MURDOCH: I don't think my father would have any direct knowledge of the arrangements that were being made about for his entry or exit through a particular building Mister Sheridan, respectfully. SHERIDAN: Ok. Again, Mr Murdoch, have you ever imposed any pre-conditions... RUPERT: Which visit to Downing Street are you talking about? SHERIDAN: Just following the last general election. RUPERT: I was invited within days to have a cup of tea to be thanked for the support by Mister Cameron, no other conversation took place. It lasted minutes. SHERIDAN: And that's the one where you went in through the back door? RUPERT: Yes. I had been asked by Mister Brown also many times. SHERIDAN: To go in through the back door? RUPERT: Yes. SHERIDAN: Can I also ask you... RUPERT: And my family who went there many times. SHERIDAN: Have you ever imposed any pre-conditions on or upon a party leader in the UK before giving them the support of your newspapers? RUPERT: I've never guaranteed anyone the support of our newspapers. We changed, we had been supporting the Thatcher government and the Conservative government that followed and we thought it had gotten tired and we changed and supported the Labour party. Whenever it was, thirteen years ago, with the direct result of loss of 200,000 circulation. SHERIDAN: Did you ever impose any pre-conditions on either the Labour Party. RUPERT: No. SHERIDAN: Or the Conservative party? RUPERT: No. SHERIDAN: No pre-conditions whatsoever? RUPERT: No, the only conversation I had with them, with Mister Blair, that I remember was I spoke with him about the Euro. SHERIDAN: Well, Mister Blair visited you halfway around the world. RUPERT: He what? SHERIDAN: Mister Blair visited you halfway around the world. RUPERT: He...? SHERIDAN: Halfway around the world. Before the 1997 election...anyway it doesn't matter. RUPERT: It was something that Mr Cameron arranged. SHERIDAN: Can I also ask you...it is understood that the FBI are investigating 9/11 victims. Have you commissioned an investigation into these allegations? RUPERT: We have seen no evidence of that all and as far as we know the FBI haven't either. If they do, we will treat it exactly the same way as we have here and I cannot believe it could happen from anyone in America. Whether someone at the News of the World or Mr Mulcare took it on himself to do it, I don't know. They are certainly unnecessary...(unclear) JAMES: TO SPEAK SHERIDAN: I'll come back to you James in a minute. I just want to clarify, if these allegations are in anyway true whatsoever, will you commission an investigation into them? RUPERT: Absolutely. SHERIDAN: Ok. Also you must be horrified by the scandal and the fact that it has cost you the BSkyB transaction and lead to the closure of the News of the World. Who do you blame for that? RUPERT: Well a lot of people had agendas I think in trying to build this hysteria. All our competitors in this country formally announced a consortium to try and stop us and they caught us with dirty handds and they put the hysteria around. SHERIDAN: It was the competitors that stopped you getting the BSkyB bid? RUPERT: No I think a mood developed which made it very impractical to go ahead. JAMES: We have been very clear that serious allegations of wrongdoing have been levelled about the News of the World. And we believed that the News of the World, the actions of some reporters and people some years ago have fundamentally tarnished the trust that the News of the World had with readers and this is a matter of huge and sincere regret of mine, my father's and the company's. The company's priority, very much so, is to restore that trust, is to operate in the right way, make sure that the company can be the company that it's always aspired to be and the removal of the proposal to make an offer to the BSkyB shareholders who are not News Corporation is simply a reflection of that priority of moving forward. SHERIDAN: I have sympathy with what you're saying but you understand that people, the victims of the News of the World, based on the allegations, will find that a bit strange. JAMES: And it is our absolute priority with those… what happened at the News of the World was wrong. We and I have have apologised profusely and unreservedly for that, and my father has as well. These are very very serious matters and we are trying to establish the facts of any new allegations as they come up, we are working closely with the police to find out where the wrongdoing was and to hold people accountable and I think that importantly as well to the victims of illegal voicemail interceptions not just have we apologised but we have admitted liability, the company has admitted liability and we have set up the appropriate third party compensation schemes to do that. These are all matters that we are fully engaged in. SHERIDAN: If I can just return to your father, I know that it's a very stressful time for yourselves. But Mr Murdoch do you accept that ultimately you are responsible for this whole fiasco? RUPERT: No. SHERIDAN: You're not responsible? Who is responsible? RUPERT: The people that I trusted to run things, then maybe the people that they trusted. SHERIDAN: Can you name… RUPERT: I worked with Mr Hinton for 52 years and I would trust him with my life. SHERIDAN: Are you satisfied that the cash payments that were made by the News Corporation to informants to stories were registered with appropriate tax authorities? RUPERT: I don't know anything about that. Perhaps James can answer, I… SHERIDAN: If people were given money in order to get stories, did you notify the appropriate tax authorities about this? JAMES: All of our financial affairs as a public company are transparent, are audited, the tax jurisdictions the company works in all around the world are worked with transparently and thoroughly, tax compliance is an important priority for any business and the company complies with the laws. SHERIDAN: Would that also include people who are on regular monthly retainers, registering their payments with HMRC? JAMES: I have no knowledge of separate people on retainers and their own tax affairs. I can speak for the company's tax arrangements and to the best of my knowledge we are a company that takes tax compliance, regulatory compliance, financial and regulatory transparency hugely seriously and that's something we're very proud of. SHERIDAN: Can I just turn to James and you'll be aware of the situation ofwhat happened to Tommy Sheridan, the former MSP who's currently in prison. Bob Bird, whether deliberately or inadvertently, misled the jury in Tommy Sheridan's perjury trial. Your company has not disclosed the internal emails that may aid the appeal of Mr Sheridan. Why is that? JAMES: I don't have direct knowledge of that Mr Sheridan, I apologise but certainly additional questions on that in the future, I'm happy to supply written answers but I don't have direct knowledge and I'm not in a position to answer those questions. SHERIDAN: James could you please confirm and deny whether any News Corporation company is a subject of an investigation by the serious fraud office? JAMES: I have no knowledge of that at this point. SHERIDAN: Could you also confirm and deny whether any News Corporation company is a subject of an investigation by the Financial Services Authority? JAMES: Not to my knowledge. SHERIDAN: And finally, please confirm and deny whether any News Corporation company is a subject of an investigation by HMRC? JAMES: Not to my knowledge, we have ongoing dialogue with the HMRC and various subsidiaries but as far as investigations are concerned, I have no knowledge of one.